Wallabies legend claims Adelaide and Perth are “throwing $10-$12m” at Rugby Australia to secure the rights to a British and Irish Lions test in 2025… with Brisbane set to be DELETED
- British and Irish Lions to tour Australia in 2025
- Melbourne and Sydney will host two matches in the three-test series
- Adelaide and Perth are fighting for the right to host the third Test
The South Australian and Western Australian governments are reportedly locked in a multi-million dollar battle to secure the rights to host a trial of British and Irish lions in 2025.
The Lions will travel to Australia for a three-Test series and while matches in Sydney and Melbourne are known to be already closed, the identity of the third host city has yet to be confirmed.
Brisbane has hosted the Lions on each of their tours since 1950, with tests played at four venues: Brisbane Showgrounds, Ballymore Stadium, The Gabba and Lang Park.
But that impressive streak could be coming to an end, according to Wallabies great Tim Horan.
“There is talk of Adelaide and Perth putting up big numbers in Rugby Australia to host a British and Irish Lions test match in Perth or Adelaide, which would be fantastic,” he told Stan Sport. Rugby paradise.
The British & Irish Lions sell out at Suncorp Stadium in 2013, but the venue may not host a tryout on the Lions’ next tour in 2025.
Wallabies great Tim Horan has warned the Queensland government that Suncorp Stadium may miss out on hosting a test match in 2025.
‘That means Brisbane misses the test match.
“The Queensland government really has to start talking to Rugby Australia and say, ‘Listen, these other two states, Perth and Adelaide, are spending $10-12 million just to get this test match.'”
With Australia hosting the 2027 Rugby World Cup, Brisbane’s possible absence from the Lions’ tour could raise questions about their role in the tournament.
Seven pool games and two quarter-final matches were played at Suncorp Stadium when Australia last hosted the Rugby World Cup in 2003.
“The Queensland government is very slow from what I hear about the Rugby World Cup for [put themselves forward as] host quarterfinals or group stages,’ Horan said.
The Queensland government has made it clear that the 2032 Olympics are its priority from a planning and financial standpoint, with Horan suggesting that a compromise must be reached with Rugby Australia.
“The challenge for Rugby Australia very quickly will be the balance between receiving a smaller amount of money from the state government in Queensland compared to Perth or Adelaide, because finances have been tight for a long period of time,” he said.
Traditionally strongholds of cricket and the AFL, Adelaide and Perth have hosted high-profile fixtures in both rugby codes of late.
The Adelaide Oval has emerged as one of the contenders to host one of the Tests against the Lions, after hosting its first Wallabies game in 18 years last August.
Optus Stadium is also in the running after hosting two Bledisloe Cup tests in the last four years and hosting the series opener against England last July.
The Adelaide Oval hosted the Wallabies for the first time in 18 years last August when the Wallabies played South Africa in the Rugby Championship and also stage Game I of the State of Origin series at the end of May.
The interstate between New South Wales and Queensland has moved to Perth twice in the last four years, and Optus Stadium will host Game II of the 2019 and 2022 series.
Meanwhile, the Wallabies played two Bledisloe Cup tests at Optus Stadium in 2019 and 2021 and were last in Perth in July last year for the series-opening test against England.
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